The Gift (Hardcover)

Indie Next List

December 2009Every holiday season, people watch It's a Wonderful Life, and now readers will add The Gift by Cecelia Ahern to their seasonal calendar. It is sure to become an annual ritual and a holiday classic with a message -- that time is the greatest gift you can give. -- Karin Beyer, Saturn Booksellers, Gaylord, MI

Description

New York Times bestselling author Cecelia Ahern spins a witty, warm, and wise modern-day fable of love, regret, hope, and second chances.

extremely successful executive, Lou Suffern is always overstretched, immune to the holiday spirit that delights everyone around him. The classic workaholic who never has a moment to spare, he is always multitasking while shortchanging his devoted wife and their adorable children. And ever since he started competing for a big promotion, he has barely seen his family at all.

One frigid morning in an uncharacteristic burst of generosity, he buys a cup of coffee for Gabe, a homeless man huddled outside his office building. Inspired by his own unexpected act of kindness, Lou decides to prolong his charitable streak and contrives to get Gabe a job in his company's mailroom. But when Gabe begins to meddle in Lou's life, the helping hand appears to be a serious mistake. Gabe seems to know more about Lou than Lou does about himself, and, perhaps more disturbingly, Gabe always seems to be in two places at once.

With Lou's personal and professional fates at important crossroads and Christmas looming, Gabe resorts to some unorthodox methods to show his stubborn patron what truly matters and how precious the gift of time is. But can he help him fix what's broken before it's too late?

About the Author

At twenty-one, Cecelia Ahern wrote her first novel, P.S. I Love You, which became an international bestseller and was adapted into a major motion picture starring Hilary Swank. Her successive novelsLove, Rosie; If You Could See Me Now; There's No Place Like Here; Thanks for the Memories; The Gift; and The Time of My Lifewere also international bestsellers, published in forty-six countries and selling more than 15 million copies collectively. The daughter of Ireland's former prime minister, Ahern lives in Dublin, Ireland.